Archive for April 2025
Manasseh Cutler
Although he did not spend that much time in the state, Manasseh Cutler was a major figure in the settling of Ohio in the years after the American Revolution. Cutler was born on May 13, 1742, in Connecticut. Descended from a long line of clergymen, Cutler entered Yale to become an attorney and broke with…
Read MoreJohn Newton
John Newton was an Anglican clergyman and former slave ship master. It took him a long time to speak out against the Slave Trade but he had an influence on many young evangelical Christians, particularly William Wilberforce. At just 11 years old, Newton went to sea with his father. In 1743 he was on his…
Read MoreJohn Francis Wade
John Francis Wade was a Catholic layman who lived in Lancashire, England. At the age of 32, Wade produced a Latin Christmas carol, Adeste Fidelis. Though scholars once thought the music was simply Wade’s copy of an ancient hymn, further research has led most to conclude that Wade composed the lyrics and music himself. Since that time,…
Read MoreWilliam Wordsworth
Born 7 April 1770 in Cockermouth, Cumberland, to the steward of an estate, Wordsworth’s early life was relatively hard. His mother died when he was eight, and the next year he was sent to attend the principal grammar school of the district at Hawkshead where he was solidly educated. Only four years later, however, his father died,…
Read MoreIsaac Backus
During the American Revolution, numerous men assisted in forging the United States. Only a handful of men, however, contributed significantly to building the philosophical foundations of both the new government and a new church denomination. Isaac Backus was a founder of the Baptist denomination, which grew out of the American Congregationalist Church. It is currently the largest…
Read MoreSamuel Wesley
The English composer, Samuel Wesley, was the son of Rev. Charles and nephew of the celerbrated Rev. John Wesley. His elder brother, Charles Wesley (1757-1834), was an harpsichodist, organist and composer. Although Samuel was also a precocious performer, like his brother’, he did not develop his faculties quite so early, for he was 3 years…
Read MoreGeorge Handel
Superlatives are often ascribed to those whom others wish to flatter. Rarely does the description of one’s person or work match the compliment given. One indication of authentic praise is when it comes from peers who know a person intimately or understand fully the intricacies of one’s profession. Such is the case with the contemporaries of George…
Read MoreIsaac Watts
In the years immediately after the Protestant Reformation, non-Roman Churches in the West were divided on the question of hymns. The Lutherans and Moravians immediately began to develop a rich tradition of hymns in the vernacular. Most of those in the Calvinist tradition, on the other hand, maintained that God had provided His people with…
Read MoreBlaise Pascal
Although he lived for only thirty-nine years, French philosopher, mathematician, and scientist Blaise Pascal (1623-1662) left an indelible mark on Christianity. Pascal is well known in scientific circles for, among other things, his studies of the vacuum and his invention of the world’s first automated calculating machine, but Pascal has much more to offer. In…
Read MoreAnne Bradstreet
Anne Bradstreet was born in 1612 to a nonconformist former soldier of Queen Elizabeth, Thomas Dudley, who managed the affairs of the Earl of Lincoln. In 1630 he sailed with his family for America with the Massachusetts Bay Company. Also sailing was his associate and son-in-law, Simon Bradstreet. At 25, he had married Anne Dudley,…
Read More